Selangor Pakatan Rakyat (PR) government seems to be in a corner with the Talam Corporation issue as Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim continues to evade replying the details.
The issue has questioned Khalid’s sharpness or in this case his intention in giving Talam, which is now called Trinity, a new lease of life at the expense of the the rakyat’s money.
The so-called debt restructuring for Talam involved several state-owned economic arms that are now in a dire straits of financial need.
Given the issue and many more issues plaguing the PR administration in the state especially the unfulfilled promises since taking over in March 2008, the PR state government is shaky.
Khalid has lost control of the state administration and worse still is the case that involved his political secretary Faekah Hussein, who is now under attack from within the unregistered alliance itself.
Not knowing how to get out of the situation as he is not a politician per say, Khalid goes on the so-called intellectualism approach, the accountability in accounting and so on.
But one thing he forgot…politics is a game of mind…his counterparts – those in his party Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), PAS and DAP – know it and they are not helping him much in this issue or other issues.
The opposition alliance is more interested in protecting their individual self and secondly the party he or she represented rather than protecting the alliance as a whole or a political front.
They have rather let Khalid take all the blame for the unfulfilled promises, for the erosion of trust from voters, for the fading of credibility than ‘sinking’ together with him.
Khalid has been facing and is currently facing the many problems alone – like it or not – they have or been seen abandoning him when the going gets tough and rough.
Protests demanding for promises to be made good from voters who voted for them in 2008 general elections are being left for Khalid to handle alone, the rest are busy with their own issues rather than helping Khalid.
In fact, from within PKR itself, Khalid is being isolated, it seems, as the party does not come out in the open to help defend him on issues related to the state and the alliance.
There are even rumours that he is being undermined by his own leaders who wanted PKR deputy president Azmin Ali to take over his position but Khalid is lucky.
PKR president herself Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Ismail is on his side as it is said she despise Azmin over the purported affair between her husband Anwar Ibrahim and Azmin’s wife Shamsidar.
Outside PKR, PAS is still a pain the neck despite the ‘togetherness’ the parties project in media and other promotional fronts.
The latest segregation of unmarried males and females in a cinema in Kuala Selangor has now become an issue although it seems small and insignificant.
Talking about young voters who are voting the first time this coming generale election, and their numbers are not small, the PR state government may lose a considerable amount from young Malay voters.
It is not that they are out to make sins in the cinema but the mere segregation is considered as the first step to a more rigid Islamic laws that would curtail the normal social life for these youngsters.
And PAS insistence on an Islamic theology state is still a ‘pain’ for PKR and DAP…being multi-racial and multi-religious political philosophy…PAS stand puts them in a very awkward position.
In fact, Khalid was having problem when former PAS leader who is Paya Jaras assemblyman Datuk Dr Hassan Ali went on the crusade for implementation of basic Islamic fundamentals.
Thus far, Selangor seems vulnerable and its position is shaky as Barisan Nasional (BN) keeps pounding on the state’s administration’s weaknesses and unfulfilled promises.
Khalid cannot hide under the so-called being new state government or needs more time to ‘undo the mistakes of BN’ as the voters are getting restless and impatient because as it seems now, the BN state administration did not make mistakes and did not run away from their promises.
Like it or not, Khalid and the PR state government is facing a rough time and an uphill battle to keep the state from slipping away to BN in the coming general election.
Planning to conduct the state election on a different date from the general election would not contain the restlessness of voters and it may even backfire.
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